Brave New Earth
by TheMadMadman
Summary: Thanks to an alien artifact, beings from across the Multiverse begin to appear on planet Earth. However, there is a sinister force behind this chain of events, with equally sinister intentions. Some of these misplaced beings will become Earth's only hope, and some will become Earth's worst nightmare. NOTICE: Categories will change in accordance with franchises in latest chapter!
1. Chapter 1: Reborn

***Special Note: () = See Footnote Section***

**Chapter 1: Reborn**

"We have been preparing this test for over six days now…" hissed a sharp-dressed man of Middle-Eastern heritage. "Please tell me that you are almost ready!" he said to a group of four scientists nearby.

"We're almost there! Get ready!" one of the scientists shouted back.

They were all preparing for the moment of truth… for this experiment would more or less determine if they could all keep their jobs. The stakes were high, and there would be no winners in this situation unless their preparation and hard work could pay off.

Nothing like what they were about to do had ever been done successfully before, and with tensions running high, the margin for error was a slim as it could ever be. Their government and sponsors eagerly awaited the results of this test, to determine if their years of planning and enormous funds were at all worth the results.

They were going to transport a being from another dimension to their own.

Power began to course through the center of the building they were inside, a twenty-story laboratory to be more precise. The monitors inside it began to display all matter of data, and the control panels shone brightly.

"We're finally ready!" one of the scientists, a skinny fellow yelled.

The sharp-dressed man walked over to a rather large control panel as it came to life. Its screen was cluttered with hazy images and coordinates, all of which were incredibly difficult to make out. However, this man knew exactly which coordinates he was going to select. He could sense the familiarity of this particular dimension as he was practically drawn to it. He selected the coordinates, and got ready to press the button labeled "Transport" on the touch-screen display.

"All set!" he yelled to his colleagues, and he saw them nodding and giving gestures of confirmation. The man smiled almost deviously, and quickly pressed the button…

0ooOoo0

_Paige's life had ended. This much she knew._

_She could remember all of the things that happened during her life- losing her mother, moving into the orphanage, meeting her best friends Mace, Whip, and Vi… living under the brunt of Grunn and the constant bullying by Randy. The memories of the horrible food, deplorable conditions, and back-breaking labor all eventually came rushing back to her- with a little unwanted effort on her part, of course. _

_The things she remembered easier, however, all had to do with Mace, Whip, and Vi. Only… all of that had ended with a single tragic incident._

_Brutally murdered at the hands of a strange and frightening Dreamkeeper, she had experienced her existence being ripped away. She fought and struggled for her life, but it was not enough. Judging by her current predicament, this was absolutely the case. _

_However, what she did not know, or rather, what she wanted to know- was where exactly she was. _

_All she could feel, hear, taste, see, or smell was the overwhelming sensation of emptiness. Although, this was not a dark and bottomless emptiness- no, this was an ever-expanding and intensifying white aura that surrounded her._

_It made the young Dreamkeeper feel very uneasy, but there was also a calming sensation that enveloped her. She tried looking down at her hands, but could see nothing except the white fog that clouded this… space. _

_However, as time passed she could hear a few faint voices. They sounded like grown adults, and they seemed to be coming from everywhere around her. As the seconds ticked by, she could hear the voices getting louder. These voices seemed to be talking about… someone. They said things like:_

"_Her senses are starting to come back!" and "I guess she made it here in one piece."_

_Paige knew that there was no way they were talking about her, since she was dead. Or were they in fact talking about her? That last person who spoke seemed to have a condescending tone in his voice, and for all she knew they could be investigating her crime-scene or giving an autopsy of her body. Was she a ghost? Was she hovering over these men while they investigated the cause of her death? _

_Perhaps not though, for Paige was starting to feel something else instead of the white aura. This was actual, physical, feeling. Sensations were beginning to slowly return to her. To her surprise, she felt something behind and underneath her. It felt as if she was lying on a hard, uncomfortable table, with what seemed like paper on top of the surface. She also noticed the familiar sensation of her blue gown that she always wore._

_Paige could now hear a male's voice with a strange accent say, "Test her senses and vitals! We need to know if this truly worked!" Although this time the voice didn't sound far off. It sounded very clear and it seemed like it was coming from a source just a few feet away from her. _

_Then, it felt as if someone was repeatedly poking her right and left hands with a stick. Instinctively, she attempted to swat the nuisances away with a very weak swipe of her arms. _

"_She's responding…" another voice said. _

_Although Paige could definitely tell that her senses were slowly returning, she still could not see even one inch in front of her due to the white aura. However, this also started to dissipate, giving her a blurry view of what was going on. Before she could even make out any distinct shapes, she heard an annoying sound in both of her ears. It was as if someone was snapping their fingers extremely close to her eardrums. Paige's hands quickly shot to her ears in order to block the unbearable noise from reaching her, as she quickly found out that she had a massive headache. _

"_Her hearing seems to be okay!" the same voice called out to someone else. Paige could now hear footsteps coming her way, and at the same time her vision began to clear up. It was now that her sense of smell seemed to be returning as well, and to her the place she was in smelled a lot like a doctor's office in the Margate District. _

_She winced, and tried to focus her eyes some more. It felt as if she had been sleeping for five days straight, or like she had been tossed about in the ocean and had just woke up on a deserted island. Although instead of the sound of Skraws, there was the sound of strange men- possibly doctors, talking about her supposed condition. _

_Her vision began to clear, and she blinked her eyes slowly a few times before really focusing on what was around her. Paige was on what she assumed to be an operating table, like the ones she had seen at the health center. She was still in a dazed and confused state, so she looked from herself to the room around her. She could make out shelves and other tables, all lined with vials, beakers, meters, and a slew of foreign instruments that she had never seen before. Then, she looked in front of her table. Paige's eyes quickly adjusted, and then shot wide open. _

_There, in front of the table, were four incredibly odd Dreamkeepers that all looked almost the same. They had little to no fur- except for on their heads, semi-pointy noses, and ears on the side of their heads instead of near the top. To top it off she realized that all of them were staring at her with wide, amazed eyes. Paige and the strange Dreamkeepers stared at each other for what seemed like several minutes. She noticed that they began to quietly talk to each other, all while making sure not to take their eyes off of her. One of them walked closer to her, which made Paige gently shift away from him in a nervous fashion. She began to fear what exactly this man would do to her, especially after her last ordeal… _

0ooOoo0

"Well hello there, little one!" he suddenly said to her with a sincere smile on his face. Seeing him speak so suddenly and with such a calm demeanor, given her current situation, Paige screamed and found the strength to leap off of the table… and land on the floor. She hit the ground hard, and she was quickly reminded that she now had her ability to feel back. The doctors gasped in surprise, and began to move towards her. She bruised her leg slightly in the fall, but she persisted through the pain and practically jumped behind a box near the table in an attempt to hide from the strangers.

As she sat behind the box, panting in fear, the men cautiously advanced towards her. "Please settle down! We aren't going to hurt you!" one of them pleaded, and walked around to where she was sitting. Paige ignored his words, and got up from her current spot to run to another. As she ran, one of the scientists dove to try and subdue her, but Paige dodged him and he just ended up landing on the floor himself. Paige made it to another table, and proceeded to hid behind it. The men followed her, trying not to spook her but ending up doing it anyway. She saw them as they kept advancing towards her, and they were much taller than she had previously thought. They had to be almost three times her size, and the white lab coats that they wore seemed to make them more intimidating to her.

Paige's eyes grew wide as they moved to surround her, but she thought quickly. She scrambled under the table's legs and through to the other side. She got to her feet, and tried desperately to find an exit door or anything that would lead out of this terrifying situation. Once she rounded the corner of another table, she saw that she was at a dead end. She had no illusions that she could get away this time, as the haze from her previous state was beginning to wear off completely. Large shadows crept up behind her, signaling the arrival of the strange men, and at this moment Paige became as scared as she was during that fateful night at the orphanage washroom. However, this fear somehow began to turn into determination and anger. Paige closed her eyes, and clenched her fists.

No more!

This won't turn out like it did last time! Not if she had anything to say about it…

With a look of focus and determination, Paige slowly turned around to face her pursuers. They stood before her, and had her trapped. She thought that she would fight her way out of it if she had to. Anything to keep herself from returning to that static, uneventful, torturous state of being she had just come out of.

Then, she took another look at the men's faces. To her surprise, what she saw wasn't really frightening at all. Sure, they seemed different, but there was a stoic calmness that these men seemed to give off towards her. Their eyes were almost exactly like her own, and from what she could see, they did not seem threatening in the slightest.

One of them, who looked to be the eldest of the bunch, kneeled down to her level and crossed his arms in a calm fashion. He had short, white hair and a white, stubbly beard that bordered his mouth "Please, Miss," he said with a voice that personified kindness and wisdom. "Calm down, we promise not to hurt you… can you understand me?" he asked.

Paige stepped back a bit and clenched her teeth. "S-s-stay away f-from m-me!" she quivered. "L-leave m-me alone!"

The other scientists reeled back just a little bit and began to whisper amongst themselves. Apparently they were shocked that Paige could speak in a language they could understand. Another, dark-skinned scientist with a bald head stepped forward and put his hand on the kneeling scientist's shoulder in a friendly manner. "Doctor Hanford doesn't lie, little one…" he said to her in a deep voice. "He wouldn't hurt a fly- and neither would any of us," he added in what seemed like a sincere tone.

Paige could feel her defenses beginning to drop, and she suddenly felt helpless and scared again. Inch by inch, she let her fists drop and open up. "We know that you've probably been through a lot when you came here, and we're here to try and make it easier on you… so please don't be afraid…" the man said to her. While Paige looked at him, she could somehow see and feel that this stranger was telling the truth. Perhaps it was the sincerity in their eyes and faces but whatever the reason, she suddenly began to feel vulnerable again. She kept her head down with her eyes closed, and began shaking like a leaf.

Before the scientist could say anything else, Paige began to sob and slumped down against the side of the table. She wrapped her small arms around her legs and brought them up to her chin as she cried into her gown. Feeling truly sorry for the strange little girl, the scientists came closer and tried to make themselves seem as non-threatening as possible to her. To Paige, it felt like she hadn't cried this hard in a very long time- the last time being when her mother had passed away. Between her confused sobbing and choking, Paige managed to ask the most competent question she could muster. "Where a-am I? Who are y-you?" she sobbed. The scientists looked at each other again, before a particularly skinny one leaned forward to speak.

"Well… those questions might take a while to answer," he replied honestly. Another scientist quickly nudged him, and he spoke again. "Um… Uh… and we were also wondering… what is your name, little girl?"

Paige was finally starting to calm down, so she lifted her head and looked back at them. "M-my name's Paige," she replied with a sniffle. The scientists in front of her acted friendly, and were beginning to make her feel more relaxed.

"Well then Paige, its nice to meet you," a rather portly scientist said, and held out his large hand. "You can call me Doctor Mason!" Paige just looked at him in a nervous manner, and declined the hand shake. With an almost comical look of defeat, the scientist withdrew his hand and let out a sad sigh before looking at his peers.

"Um… we were also starting to wonder… what exactly you are, Paige," the skinny one said. Paige just looked at him with a confused expression. "Could you please tell us?" he asked.

Paige was about to answer, until another man that looked somewhat like the others walked into view behind the kneeling scientists. "She is a Dreamkeeper," the man replied with a slight accent. At the sound of his voice, the scientists turned in his direction and stood up. Paige looked at the man with curiosity, as he was a bit different from the scientists. Instead of a white jacket, he wore a very expensive-looking dark-crimson suit and pants. He had light-brown skin and dark hair that was cut short and made him look like a professional at… whatever he did. He had deep brown eyes, and neatly trimmed eyebrows as well. He had no facial hair below his eyes, and his entire demeanor was as sharp as his appearance.

"_Damn, I forgot that he's been here the entire time!_" the portly scientist thought.

"A… what?" the dark-skinned scientist asked with curiosity. Paige looked from the newcomer to the scientists, and then back to the stranger, not really knowing what to think. She was utterly confused, as she thought that these people were Dreamkeepers just like her. This is understandable, since Dreamkeepers were so incredibly varied in size and appearance.

"A Dreamkeeper!" the well-dressed man repeated, only this time he said it with more grandeur. "Is that right, Dear?" he asked Paige, who nodded in bewilderment. "Then… the experiment worked!" he added with a sly smile.

"How do you know what she is, Sir?" Dr. Hanford asked. The other scientists were just as curious as Hanford was, and joined in starting at the newcomer.

"Well, I… did a lot of research on her kind and her world as well!" he quickly replied with an accent that someone on Earth would describe as Middle-Eastern. "You come from the Dreamworld, is that correct, Miss...?" he asked the young Dreamkeeper. "Paige…" she replied. "And yeah, I come from the Dreamworld," she added.

"Excellent, then allow me to introduce myself," the man smiled. "My name is Uzara Cojita, and it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ms. Paige," he greeted her, and held out his hand. Paige warily reached out for his hand and shook it.

This got the subtle attention of the scientist whose handshake got rejected by Paige. "Hey, she won't shake _my _hand, but shaking 'Creepy Arabian Capone's' hand is just fine?" he whispered to the other scientists. "Shhh! Shut up!" the skinny scientist hissed back, and made a 'zip-it' motion with his fingers over his mouth.

"If you don't m-mind me a-asking, what experiment w-were you guys talking about?" Paige asked timidly as she stood up.

Uzara looked her in the eye, and smiled. "We have proven that our little artifact is now fully usable!" he declared. "Our government has worked with us in providing resources to test the capabilities of this institution's most precious artifact, the Cosmic Key! You see, I don't wish to bore you with the details of how it works and what went into acquiring it, so I will just tell you what it does," Uzara explained to Paige, who was still listening.

"This device known as the Cosmic Key is meant to act as a bridge between our world and other worlds such as yours- as well as other dimensions and realities. I could have chosen any realm closer to our own for simplicity's sake, although you may be delighted to know that I chose your Dreamworld specifically," he explained.

"Oh..." Paige replied, only half-understanding what Uzara was rambling about. "Well where's the Key?" she asked as she looked around for it.

"It's in another room," Uzara replied simply. "We are transferring its power from there to this room and its devices, where the experiments take place."

"Well, why am I h-here? What's so special about my world?" Paige asked in an almost suspicious manner.

"The simple answer is that I have always been interested in your world. I have been knee-deep in research about the Dreamworld, Paige, as well as your race. However, the available sources that contain information about your world and race are very ancient, and hard to decipher. Not to mention a bit biased…" he added with a cough. "You will be surprised to know that _your_ world, the Dreamworld, is connected with _this_ world… _our_ world," he explained. "It is a metaphysical connection that links the two, and you happen to be on the other side of it, now. That is how we were able to bring you here."

Uzara chuckled softly, and turned away from her. "I am aware of your powers, Paige. I know that your kind possesses the uncanny trait of special powers that range from the defensive, to the practical and even the aggressive. In fact, I am able to detect and predict the powers of a Dreamkeeper," he explained methodically. **(1)**

This shocked and even scared Paige to a noticeable extent. "H-how is that p-possible?" she gasped.

"Magic, my dear," Uzara replied. "Or rather, ancient techniques used by you Dreamkeepers to detect and even manipulate power use," he explained, and turned back to Paige. "Although these arts have not been used by either of our races for a long, long time," he added.

"Can you follow along with what I am trying to tell you, little one?" he asked her. She nodded in reply, slowly comprehending what her situation was all about, and who these people were.

"Now, the experiment was a success. However, I and my colleagues doubt that in this stage of development in the experiments with the Cosmic Key, we will have the capacity to send you back to where you came from…" Uzara suddenly said, getting a slightly shocked reaction from Paige. Although, her expression soften once she recalled what had just happened to her back at Grunn's Orphanage. She was about to tell these strange people what had happened, but she suddenly felt overwhelmed, and unable to bring herself to explain the event.

Much to the scientists' surprise, Paige replied, "That's okay…" in an emotionless manner.

Paige could only stand, stare, and listen for any kind of reaction. She was close to tears, but fought them back. "I'm okay now, though, right?" Paige suddenly found herself asking.

Uzara nodded slowly, and crossed his arms. "You are alright for now, young one," he replied to her. "However, there is much you need to learn before you can truly grasp the weight of your situation. To my race, you are an outsider. You are a Dreamkeeper, however, _we_…" Uzara began to explain, and then motioned to the group of scientists standing behind Paige. "…Are Humans."

Paige looked at the scientists, and back to Uzara. "So, you really aren't Dreamkeepers?" she asked innocently. The man slowly shook his head.

"To your race, we may seem odd… although not here. This is _our_ world…" Uzara replied cryptically. He began to walk over to a white set of curtains that he parted, revealing the rest of the huge, circular room they were in. Paige warily looked up above her, and realized that they were all in a large, circular room- and a small part of said room had been blocked off with white curtains to act as a makeshift infirmary. Uzara glanced back at Paige, and coaxed her to come with him. "Follow me…" he told her, and she obeyed. Paige cautiously followed the human through the door, leaving the scientists in the previous room. After the door closed, the skinny fellow practically threw a clipboard across the room- almost breaking something.

"WOO! Do you realize how much of a breakthrough this is?!" he yelled. "We're all going to be rich and famous!" he added as he grabbed the shoulders of his fellow scientists. He walked with them outside of the infirmary space they had set up within the large, round central control room of the laboratory. When Paige had been transported there, she was unconscious for the most part, so the infirmary was hastily cobbled together in an attempt to provide any necessary medical care she would have needed once she appeared.

Dr. Hanford forcefully brought his own hand onto the raving scientist's soldier. "Calm down, Watterson! Can't you see that we're going to have to keep her top secret for a long time?" he asked. "No one except our division can know about this! Imagine the chaos that would ensue if it got out that we have, for all intents and purposes, an _Alien_ living here! With those laws that the public are subjected to, this entire situation could get ugly really fast. Keep your head together, and wait until the time is right so no one will get harmed!" Hanford told him. Watterson stopped jumping around for a few seconds and brought his attention to Hanford. "We're going to have to keep her safe. She's a little girl…" he added, which made Watterson lose his smile. "The experiment worked, but dammit! We took a little girl from her world and brought her onto our paranoid, war-ridden, self-absorbed slice of hell!"

Watterson became more serious about the subject at hand. "To be fair, do you really know if her Dreamworld was any better? It could be even worse than our world!" he countered.

Hanford thought about Watterson's words for a few seconds. "Perhaps you're right, Watterson. That could very well be true. However, that is not an excuse to tamper with reality… and don't tell Uzara I said that!" he replied.

"Will you two quit bickering?" the dark-skinned scientist interjected.

"Oops! Sorry about that, Dr. Linden!" Watterson replied sheepishly.

"Yeah, my apologies too…" Hanford added.

"Whatever the case may be, she's our responsibility now," Linden explained in his deep voice. "Those things are sure to be _personal matters_ to her, and that means we should ask her about those things ourselves." The other scientists could at least agree on that.

"Well, whatever becomes of this experiment, the world will never be the same… At least for those who know about it," the portly scientist observed.

"Too right, Dr. Mason…" Linden added. "Too right…"

Just then, sparks began to fly from one of the large control boxes, startling the scientists.

"What's it doing?!" Dr. Hanford exclaimed as the others rushed over to the sparking box. Dr. Linden pulled out a tablet and connected it to the malfunctioning equipment.

"I'm running a quick diagnostic on it now! Until its done, stay back!" Linden ordered. He watched for a minute as the software finished running its tests and collecting data, until a beep emanated from the device. Linden quickly looked over the data, and looked back up at his colleagues. "You might want to check this out, folks…" he murmured.

The other scientists walked over to Linden, and glanced over the data that had been collected. "It… it determined that the Cosmic Key's signature is unstable!" Dr. Mason exclaimed. "Do we need to evacuate?!"

"No!" Dr. Linden replied in an attempt to calm everyone down. "None of the lab's occupants are in any immediate danger. Remember, if the Cosmic Key becomes unstable, then there is a potential chance that something may be transported within a one hundred-mile radius of the Key itself," he reminded his fellow scientists. "If that happens, and there is any sort of threat, then we have military personnel stationed at the base of the complex. They'll take care of it. We are all safe here!" he explained.

This reminder calmed the group down, so Dr. Watterson walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a mess of digital equipment used for testing the Cosmic Key. "I guess I'll get to work on figuring out just what the hell went wrong then…" he sighed.

0ooOoo0

Paige followed Uzara through a few short halls, and into what looked like a living area. Once they entered, Uzara came to a stop and faced Paige. He prompted the girl to take a look around the area, much to her curiosity. This was no ordinary living area however, because it seemed to hold wall-to-wall luxury. It was quite the change in scenery for Paige, who had since then been accustomed to boarded floors, creaky doors, terrible drafts, and ship-sails for walls. Almost everything seemed to be made of pure silver or gold, and studded with brilliant, shining gemstones. Portraits of what she assumed to be famous humans hung on the walls, alongside swords, shields, and even a variety of helmets. On the left side of the room was a towering bookshelf, filled to the brim with countless volumes of literature. There were also busts of human figures in the room, and each was propped up by the finest-quality wood.

"Just so you know, this part doesn't come standard with most laboratories!" Uzara chuckled as he saw the girl eyeing the luxurious room. Paige actually started to enjoy herself as she looked around at the different assortments of knick-knacks, until something caught her eye.

She had completely ignored it when she walked in the room, however, there it was. A giant, glass window big enough to act as one of the room's walls was located to the left of the doorway entrance. Outside, an otherworldly sight awaited Paige. She walked up to the window and gazed out of it the best she could. There was no doubt in her young mind that she was high up off the ground, and it was possibly the tallest building she had ever been in during her life. From what she could see, giant, circular and rectangular buildings crowded the area around the building that she and the others were in. They had lights and activity, just like Anduruna. Although she knew that it wasn't.

It was this venue that allowed Paige to take in everything that had happened to her recently. She was now in a new world, surrounded by beings called Humans. She was probably as far as she could be from the Dreamworld that she knew. However, she began to think that maybe this situation was not as bad as it had initially seemed. This was a second chance at life for her. For one, there would be no Grunn or Randy picking on her. Two, she could finally live in a substantial home that doesn't need tarp for walls or an outhouse instead of plumbing.

And lastly, maybe someone in this world would finally adopt her, like Uzara. He was strange, but he knew so much about Dreamkeepers and their powers- maybe he could help harness her powers and practice with them. The odds of adoption were probably better here anyway, since it seemed like no one in Anduruna would ever want to adopt her. Or the others… What about Mace and Whip? How could she forget? Her best friends were probably alive and well in Anduruna, having to live life without her. She missed those two so much, especially Mace. She felt as though she would give all of this opportunity up just for a chance to properly say goodbye to them. The familiar sensation of emptiness struck her again, and she had to fight back tears to avoid having another crying spell. After she took another long look through the window, she remembered the question that she had wanted to ask ever since she arrived there.

"Mr. Uzara?" Paige asked timidly.

The man turned to her slowly. "Yes, Paige?" he asked nonchalantly.

"If I'm not in the Dreamworld, then what world is this exactly?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

Uzara walked up beside Paige, and gazed out the window with her. "We call it Earth…"

**End of Chapter 1…**

**(1)** **Dreamkeeper Powers:** All Dreamkeepers possess special powers that vary according to the individual. Some are passive, while others are more aggressive. They constitute anything from helping plants grow faster, to firing energy blasts through the air. This goes without saying that one could use their powers in a multitude of ways. The reason that Dreamkeepers have powers in the first place is because of the Nightmares. The Nightmares are horrific creatures that exist within the Dreamworld as a natural counterbalance to the Dreamkeepers- whose ultimate purpose in existence is to protect the human world's inhabitants from the Nightmares, who want to harm any life form they can. A single Dreamkeeper and a human share a bond that makes the Dreamkeeper a sort of avatar for the human, as both of them will live incredibly similar lives and go through similar events. If a Nightmare was to kill a Dreamkeeper, then that human's subconscious will be vulnerable while they dream in their sleep. Afterwards, the Nightmare can slip through the folds of reality and into the person's psyche to cause catastrophic damage to them. This means that the human will either die, go insane, or even become partly possessed by the Nightmare. It is this purpose that gives the Dreamkeepers their powers- to be able to fight back and protect themselves from Nightmares, as a single Nightmare alone is worth a few Dreamkeepers in battle.


	2. Chapter 2: Up to Speed

***Special Note: () = See Footnote Section***

**Chapter 2: Up to Speed**

"So I hear that the experiment in California was a success!" a well-dressed, Caucasian man whom looked to be in his late forties said in a congratulatory tone. Within the room he was sitting in, this man was surrounded on all sides by personal bodyguards with pistols and sunglasses. There was also a line of men and women behind him, all of whom were dressed just as professionally. He was talking to someone on a large plasma television screen that showed a live feed from California.

The person he was talking to was none other than Uzara Cojita. "That it was, Sir!" Uzara replied with a formal smile. He was standing inside his luxury quarters within his laboratory. "And I cannot thank you enough for taking the time off from your busy schedule to congratulate my team and I," Uzara added.

The other man clasped his hands together and leaned back in his chair slightly. "It is quite the pleasure, Mr. Cojita!" the man replied with a smile of his own. "You and your team have taken quite a large step towards an entirely new age of science and discovery! Imagine the possibilities…"

Uzara laughed, and straightened his black tie on his dark-crimson suit. "I sure hope so, Sir!"

"So give me the details, Mr. Cojita…" the man began. "Since you are the Head Administrator of the Channel City laboratory that performed these tests, what exactly happened when you used the artifact?" he asked with genuine interest.

Uzara cleared his throat, and explained. "We had been preparing for this initial test for months, but the tail-end of the preparations started to be finalized seven days ago. Once we had determined that the artifact itself was ready to be tested, I used the custom-made interface that was built for it and personally picked out a target dimension from which to transport a being to the tower. Because of my interest in its theoretical existence, I chose the fabled Dreamworld as the candidate. I was able to locate it, so I selected it and pressed the 'Transport' button. I and my team rushed over to the designated area for Controlled Entries, which is the term that we use for manually selected and approved teleportations. We waited for a total of ten seconds as the being in question materialized in a flash of bright, blue light. And then, we saw her!"

"Saw who?" the other man asked.

Uzara continued. "We saw that a young, anthropomorphic female member of a species known as Dreamkeepers had materialized on the floor of the chamber. She was unconscious, and for a few minutes, we had believed her to be near death. We acted quickly, and set up a small, makeshift infirmary in an attempt to save her. However, our worries soon abated when we began to examine her, and she started to show signs of improvement all by herself!"

"Fascinating!" the man exclaimed. "Please, go on!" he added, while a man and woman next to him began to take vigorous notes on everything Uzara was describing.

So Uzara elaborated even more. "She began to regain consciousness, and soon after that, she woke up completely."

"What occurred after she woke up?" the man asked Uzara.

"One of my associates, Dr. Hanford- the kind and gentle soul that he is, tried to make contact with the Dreamkeeper," Uzara explained.

"And then what happened?" the man asked.

"She screamed, and jumped off of the examination table onto the floor…" Uzara replied with a wary sigh. The man listening frowned slightly, and put his hand to his chin.

"She was slightly injured, but that did not stop her from playing cat and mouse with my scientists," Uzara remarked, almost chuckling at the irony. "She eventually gave up and we attempted to make contact with her once again. We were surprised that she could actually speak fluent English. We got her to relax, and she told us that her name was Paige," Uzara explained.

"Paige? Alright then…" the man commented.

"Not much concerning her happened after that," Uzara added. "After she was welcomed into our establishment and made comfortable though, some complications with the artifact arose…"

"Oh?" the man asked with concern. "Such as…?"

Uzara tensed up a bit as he began to answer the man's query. "Once the transport was complete, my team noticed that the signature of the artifact had become unstable… the worst part about this is… well, we do not know what has caused it!"

"Not a good sign… if you don't mind me saying," the man replied with a wary expression.

"The artifact in question is now considered unstable, Sir… and that means that there is now a possibility of Rogue Entries," Uzara explained.

"What exactly is a 'Rogue Entry', Mr. Cojita?" the man asked in interest and concern.

"You see, a Rogue Entry is what occurs when a being or object is teleported without official authorization," Uzara replied. "Most of the time, these will be initiated from the other end of the artifact's sights. This means that avenues or portals for entry into our world will sporadically appear in other dimensions, time periods, alternate universes, and distant planets on their own, and _without_ a user's input. As you can probably imagine, this situation could become very dangerous…" Uzara explained. "A Rogue Entry can potentially be transported anywhere within a one hundred mile radius of the artifact while it is unstable."

The man and those he kept in his company ruminated on this information for a solid minute before the man spoke up. "I believe I understand, Mr. Cojita," he replied. "Although I also understand that we have at least two hundred military personnel stationed at that laboratory. In good faith, do you believe that those soldiers can stand up to any potential threats that may result from a Rogue Entry?" he asked.

"Difficult to say, Sir…" Uzara replied quietly. "The Multiverse is a large and diverse place. Anything out there could find its way to our world. And for now, there is little we can do about it…"

"You _do_ have a plan and solution in mind for fixing this though, right?" the man asked Uzara.

"My team _is_ working on finding the cause of the problem and its elusive solution as quickly as we can, Sir!" Uzara replied.

"That's great then!" the man cheerfully replied. "You're making progress!"

"Indeed we are! And once again, thank you so much for your time!" Uzara replied. "It isn't everyday that you get to speak with the President of the United States."

"Take care, Mr. Cojita. And I wish you the best of luck with sorting those problems out," the President replied kindly.

"Will do, Sir!" Uzara replied, and the live feed ended.

The video conference came to an end, and the congregation of people in the room began to take seats around the long, wooden table in the room. As he waited for everyone to be seated, the President laid back in his chair, played with his smartphone, and proceeded to whistle to the tune of _For He's a Jolly Good Fellow_.

Once every member of his Cabinet was seated, the President put away his phone, and sat back up in his chair. He put his hands on the table and looked at the people in the room before him. "So, ladies and gentlemen…" he began. "What is going to be in the Major Incidents Report for the last twenty years- following that fiasco with the monsters a few months ago?"

One Cabinet member- a heavyset man in a grey suit, stood up, and took some documents that had been lying on the table in his hand. "I shall take the liberty of informing you and the rest of your Cabinet, Sir," he replied.

"Very well, Mister Willis," the President responded. "Bring us up to speed, then!" he added cheerfully as the rest of the room turned their attention to the man. Willis took out a pair of reading glasses, opened the file with the documents, and began to read aloud.

"The first of these Major Incidents occurred in 1998, and concerned the creature now known as 'Zilla' roaming loose in the streets of New York City. This incident was resolved, with Zilla being struck down by missiles from the U.S. Military on the Brooklyn Bridge. It was discovered that she had laid eggs in the subway system, but these were promptly disposed of after her death. However, additional eggs have been discovered in Cuba, and are currently under heavy scientific examination.

The next Incident also occurred in 2009, and concerned a terrorist plot to destroy the cities of Washington D.C., Moscow, and Beijing with Nanomite Warheads. The International special forces unit codenamed G.I. Joe was able to put a stop to this plot, but not without collateral damage. One Nanomite Warhead was deployed in Paris, France and as a result the Eiffel Tower was destroyed. This Incident was resolved after a joint-attack on the terrorists' underwater base of operations in the Antarctic, the destruction of the warheads, and the imprisonment of former M.A.R.S. Industries CEO Ian McCullen and Rex Lewis. They are currently imprisoned in a top secret prison complex in Germany.

The next incident occurred in 2011, and concerned an international conflict in the Middle East and Russia. During the recent Second Russian Civil War between the Ultranationalist rebels and the Loyalists, a coup was started in Bagradistan by the late Khaled Al-Asad with assistance from the leader of the Ultranationalist forces of Russia, Imran Zakhaev. The war extended to Bagradistan, which prompted the deployment of U.S. Marines. The Marines pushed towards the capital city of Bagradistan, where a nuclear bomb was detonated, destroying the city as well as killing 30,000 Marines. It was believed that Al-Asad may have killed himself with the explosion, but it was discovered that he had actually fled to a village in Azerbaijan. British SAS forces converged on Asad's hiding place, and killed him. After joint Special Forces killed Zakhaev's son, he took control of an ICBM launch facility and threatened to attack U.S. cities. These launches were stopped, and Zakhaev was later killed on a confrontation between Ultranationalist forces and SAS forces on a bridge. As of now, the fighting has ceased but the war has not ended. The successor in leadership of the Ultranationalist party is Vladimir Makarov, and he continues to push for extremist action against the Loyalists and their allies. This Incident is unresolved, due to the failures of multiple missions to capture or assassinate Makarov.

The next Incident occurred in 2012, and involved the enacting of the Avengers Initiative, and the formation of the Avengers. The Avengers operate alongside S.H.I.E.L.D. and are comprised of those with superhuman abilities and talents. They were formed after an Asgardian known as Loki (also the adopted brother of one of the Avengers, Thor) entered our world and stole an artifact known as the Tesseract. He used this artifact to open a portal across space, allowing an army of Chitauri to be unleashed upon New York City. The Avengers fought off the Chitauri and stopped their army by launching a nuclear missile through the portal and destroying their mothership. This Incident was resolved due to the return of both Loki and the Tesseract to Asgard.

And finally, the most recent Incident occurred earlier this year, and involved gigantic monsters known as M.U.T.O. (or Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism). One of these MUTO, a male, hatched inside of the former Janjira power plant in Japan that was monitored by Monarch. The MUTO escaped, and destroyed a Russian submarine before making its way to Honolulu, Hawaii. This creature drew possibly the biggest monster that we know of, Godzilla, out of hiding. Godzilla had not been seen by humans since 1963, with this latest incident being the most recent sighting. The two monsters ruined most of Honolulu in combat, and by the time it was over, the male M.U.T.O had flown away towards the West Coast of the United States with Godzilla in pursuit. Within a few hours, another M.U.T.O. egg, this time a female of the same species, hatched inside a nuclear waste storage facility outside of Las Vegas. The M.U.T.O. walked through the city, leaving a wake of destruction. It was determined that the two M.U.T.O. creatures were being drawn toward each other by means of a mating call. The male and female converged upon San Francisco, with Godzilla not far behind. The female laid eggs in the center of the city, as all attempts to stop the monsters by our military forces failed. In the end, we had to allow Godzilla and the other monsters to fight to the death, with Godzilla turning out to be the victor. After he killed the M.U.T.O.s, Godzilla entered back into the Pacific Ocean, and he has not been sighted since. This Incident is resolved due to the death of the M.U.T.O.s, and the destruction of their eggs," Willis concluded, and placed the documents back on the table before sitting back down.

"Thank you, Mr. Willis…" said the President, and put his elbows on the table. "I understand that in this last decade, our country as well as the rest of the world has gone through extremely difficult and unpredictable situations," he said as he looked at each member of his Cabinet. "That being said, our planet must look to the future with optimism and the hope that in times of crises like the ones mentioned, those problems will be met with the most efficient response we can muster," he added.

The President's words garnered small pockets of applause, and after it subsided, he continued. "Now, we are halfway through the year. If our world can endure without any more major incidents of international threat, then I would be confident to say that our immediate future looks bright…" he said, and proceeded to stand back up. As he did so, the members of his Cabinet stood up as well. "And with that, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to conclude this meeting," said the President, and applause started up once again. "Thank you for your time, everyone! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some important matters to attend to…" he told his Cabinet, and walked towards the door with everyone else following suit.

As the President walked out of the conference room and down one of the hallways in the White House, a slight smile appeared on his face. Things were going quite well for him and the administration. Despite the recent events with the terrorists and the monsters, the players for his own plans were still intact. It would not be long until he could finally bring these plans to fruition, and a new age on Earth with himself and a few others at the top could begin. As he kept thinking about said plans, he smiled once more. The politicians and world leaders of Earth would not know what hit them when the time came for the plan to be put into action. They believed that they were in control of everything, and knew everything that was going on in the world- but the President knew otherwise. He knew better.

However, the time for these plans was not now. Instead, it was time for him to perform his secret, daily task. There was someone he needed to talk with in the back garden, and given the recently received information about the artifact, he was going to have quite the interesting news to tell his friend…

**End of Chapter 2…**


	3. Chapter 3: Rogue Entry

***Special Note: () = See Footnote Section***

**Chapter 3: Rogue Entry**

There were barely any signs of life in the caverns below the Sabbaton Towers** (1)**, except for five teenage Dreamkeepers- three boys and two girls. They had managed to travel down even farther than any civilians were allowed to tread. They knew that they were not supposed to be down there, and that it was incredibly dangerous to travel below and into the cave systems. However, they did not care to follow these rules, since four out of the five of them had since been branded as wanted felons. Two boys were wanted for the alleged murder of their best friend at an orphanage during a thunderstorm, and the other two girls for the supposed decimation of their father's antechamber and subsequent escape. The last boy was not immediately wanted for anything, but he had sketchy relations to the Neon-Knives Streetclan, and was far from a saint himself. They were the orphans Mace and Whip, the sisters Lilith and Namah Calah, and Bast- who had joined their group yesterday.

So what reason did they have to be down here? To start, Mace and Whip had run away from the scene of a horrific crime- the murder of their best friend, Paige. Of course, they weren't the ones who committed this terrible act, but the authorities and other orphans believed that they had. They ran away until they were caught by an inventor named Scinter, who brought them to Lilith and Namah's uncle Igrath's house. They knew that the boys weren't guilty of the crime, and allowed them to stay at the house. Then, Lilith and Namah appeared, relaying how they had gotten in a fight with their father's girlfriend, Tinsel Nanaja- who was also a politician and famous pop singer, after Namah had overheard her talking with a Dreamkeeper named Ravat about a murder. The next morning a Mokoi- the greatest assassin the Nightmares possessed showed up, causing the adults in the house to hastily send the children away via telepad to an abandoned fortress on Eduro Peak hundreds of miles away. The four Dreamkeepers were starting to make their way down the mountain, when a hulking Nightmare accompanied by an insane, phase-shifting lunatic named Wisp appeared and began to give chase.

They were able to outrun Wisp and the Nightmare, and Lilith inadvertently defeated the beast by activating her Dreamkeeper power in self-defense. The next morning, their hiding place was found by Bast, who had journeyed into the Starfall Forest to locate Lilith after she did not show up for the Harvest Festival. Being led by Bast, the group finally made it back into Anduruna. They quickly made a plan to split up, and regroup at a later time. However, nothing went according to plan for any of them. Mace and Whip were chased back out of the orphanage and then traveled into the catacombs of a church to find out that a Nightmare wasn't responsible for Paige's death. They quickly met the one who _was_ responsible though, and he nearly killed them. Bast tried to get information on a figure named Nabonidus, but instead of an answer he got attacked by the Neon Knives, who almost ended him.

Lilith and Namah's father, the Viscount of Anduruna, didn't believe a word they said when they tried to explain the situation to him, and instead believed Tinsel. Namah tried to reveal her father's darkest secret to the news- her own existence, for she was illegitimate. Only they, like her father, did not believe her. Lilith had gone to the library and attempted to do research to figure out how to stop Nightmares for good. That is, until a real one ambushed her. It killed one of her friends and one of her only sources of support that she had- Mr. Peaks, the librarian, in the process. Thankfully, she was able to outwit the ghoul, and escaped to reunite with her sister. Lilith's journey was not all for naught, however. Before he died, Mr. Peaks had told her about the fabled Ancient Archives, and what knowledge they may hold regarding the information she was seeking.

That was where the group was headed now. They had since reunited and this time, no one was going to be splitting up. They agreed to stick together from now on, for safety's sake. They had just traveled down an old, mysterious flight of stone stairs in the caverns, and were now winding their way through the dark, musty cave systems that stretched below Anduruna. With only a single star-squid held by Lilith for light, the Dreamkeepers continued their journey downwards into the never-ending darkness.

0ooOoo0

_Underneath Anduruna, the Dreamworld:_

"We should almost be there. I can see some carvings and tiles on the sides of these tunnels," Lilith said to her four companions as she held the orb of light in front of her. Namah walked right behind her, followed by Mace, Whip, and Bast. They had been trekking for the better part of four uneventful hours through the caves below Anduruna, and such a trip could drain the enthusiasm out of anyone.

"These caves seem to be taking forever to get through…" Bast remarked. "I don't even think we're able to tell what time of day it is!" he added.

"It shouldn't be too far ahead of us. If the information I gathered from those old news stories and books on the Ancient Archives were accurate, then we should be getting closer to it. I assure you guys, something related to fighting Nightmares has to be there…" Lilith explained. She remembered what her old friend, Mr. Peaks had told her about the Archives. Since all of the information on the subject was mysteriously deleted from public records, their only hope to find ways of permanently destroying the Nightmares was the _"Infallible Archives," _as Peaks put it. Lilith was still partly shaken up about what happened to him at the mercy of that insidious Nightmare, Tendril… but she had to remain strong and united with her newfound friends against these incredible odds.

Namah put her hands behind her head as she walked, as the dark and tedious walk was beginning to wear out its welcome. "Heh, never knew caves could be so boring!" she remarked, as her green eyes shone slightly in the inky blackness.

Mace somewhat expected what the tunnels would be like, but was slightly confused at Namah's observation. "Well what did you expect them to be like? Me n' Whip used to climb around in the seaside caves in Margate all the time, and they're all pretty much like this," the boy replied. "No treasure, no pirates, no monsters… no mermaids…" Mace added, sounding particularly disappointed at the last part.

"Shneh…" Whip muttered under his breath, equally as disappointed.

"I haven't been allowed to go to any caves period," Namah replied. "Although I presumed that they would be incredibly vast- brimming with underground dwellings, bizarre plants, and fascinating creatures that can talk to you and lead you to riches… I'd imagine something like that," she explained with a tiny smile regardless if anyone could actually see it. "But no, these are dingy, dull, and so dark that we might as well walk with our hands over our eyes… _Check, please!_" she added with a yawn.

"Interesting- a creature of the night like yourself _not_ being fascinated with darkness," Mace joked.

Bast spoke up. "It's just an _act_, genius…" Bast retorted, which made Namah turn her head a little. Mace stopped smiling, and scowled. He really didn't like Bast, on account of his blunt and broody nature- and the fact that he also seemed to be vying for Lilith's attention did not help the situation at all. However for better or worse, he was entwined in their struggles as well.

"Oh, like your 'tough-guy' attitude? An act like that?" Mace replied harshly. The air between the two filled with tension as their animosity toward each other began to take hold once again.

"How do you know I'm acting?" Bast shot back. "Would you like me to prove it to you, Cheap Shot?"

"Oh, you're ready for more?" Mace said, and quickly spun around to face Bast in the darkness. Whip joined in this gesture and got in a fighting position as well. Lilith and Namah were used to this sort of thing by now, and while Namah usually wanted to encourage it for whatever reason, Lilith hated when they would try to fight each other.

"Mace! Bast! That's enough, you two!" Lilith scolded them after she turned to face them. Their ears drooped, and both of them now seemed to wear looks that could make one take pity on them. Lilith and Bast seemed to share an implicit connection and slightly growing interest in one another ever since they met that day at school, and she figured that Mace was overprotective of certain people for varying reasons because of the death of Paige. "Look, I know that we're all high-strung after what's been going on the past few days… but we all have to learn to get along and work together, guys. The fate of our families, friends, and the entire Dreamworld could be at stake here. We should be saving energy to fight the Nightmares instead of wasting it on fighting each other…" she told the boys.

"Okay, Lilith…" Bast replied with a sigh.

"You're right…" Mace added, and blinked his eyes. "But Bast should apologize to Namah before we put this behind us!" he suddenly added.

Bast realized that he couldn't argue with Mace's statement, and looked at Namah. "Um… I'm sorry Na-," he began to say with sincere intentions, but Namah put up a hand to stop him from saying anymore.

"Don't fret, Fisticuffs," Namah replied with a serious tone in her voice. "You will soon see that the 'Terror of the Towers' is truly more than a mere _act… _I'll prove it to you… One way or another…" she said ominously. She then posed her fingers in the shape of a gun, pointed them directly at Bast, and closed one of her eyes to mimic aiming it. She made a motion as if she was pulling the trigger and quickly turned back to Lilith. Her sister shrugged, and continued onward with the group following closely behind.

As Mace and Bast got back to walking, Mace stayed close to Bast and couldn't help but give a cheeky smile to him. "What's so funny?" Bast asked, annoyed.

"'Namah Revenge'…" Mace smiled. "I've been there before- you're in for a real treat!" he added in a delighted manner. He could only imagine what kind of punishment Bast would have to endure at the hands of Namah. "If I were you, I'd periodically check my scarf for venomous insects!" Mace whispered to the other boy, and briskly walked ahead of him. Bast stopped for a second, but shook his head and continued on.

While Namah was mysterious and admittedly very strange to Mace, Lilith was just the opposite. She personified everything Mace saw as the perfect girl. She was kind, thoughtful, and unassumingly sweet. Mace even saw her as the most beautiful girl he had ever seen or met. Even though they had just met a few days ago; Mace was already in love with her. Ever since he ran into her that day at the market, he had been beyond smitten with Lilith. It also helped that she had an entertaining, quirky sister in Namah. He liked her sister Namah as a friend because they had quite a bit in common, and it seemed that the two got along better each day ever since that debacle in the mountains. He wished that he could travel just with Whip, Lilith, and Namah for the entirety of what looked to be a long and grueling journey, but much to his disappointment, Bast was allowed to tag along. To Mace, Bast was a potential threat- and he told himself keep an eye on him in order to protect the others. Mace felt that he couldn't let anyone else die because of him, especially his friends. He still didn't fully trust this red scarf-wearing jock that had an attitude, but as far as he was concerned, he was part of the group.

The small band of Dreamkeepers came upon a wider passage in the caves, which gradually opened up into a much larger cavern. For some reason, it was not as dark as the rest of the caves, but it was still difficult to see without the star squid nonetheless. Everyone stopped once they had entered the cavern, and looked ahead at what occupied quite a large amount of space in the room. Before them, sat what everyone assumed must be the Archives. A collective sense of awe came over the Dreamkeepers as they beheld the building that according to Lilith was steeped in legend and mystery. It was hard for any of them to believe that they might have since been the only ones to see it for hundreds and hundreds of years.

However, it looked more like a castle or fortress rather than a library. There were multiple, short towers on either side of the structure, and it contained many stone windows as well. "Look up there!" Lilith told her friends, and pointed to what seemed to be a pipe coming from the ceiling of the cavern and all the way down to the top of the Archives. "That's the tube that they would send literature through so it could be compiled in the Archives- just like Mr. Peaks said!" she observed.

"This must be the place then!" Mace commented, and scratched his head as Lilith and Bast began to walk ahead.

"Nelya-Iyaba!" Whip chirped, and began to float around the group as he was anxious to go inside.

"Hmm, I guess these caves just became interesting for once!" Namah remarked, and moved forward, with Mace not far behind.

As Mace approached the ancient building with his companions, he reached down into his jacket and pulled out the turquoise charm that Paige had made for him. He looked at it, and remembered why they were all here in the first place. Something terrible was going on, and they might be the only ones in all of Anduruna that know how to stop it. If that twisted Ravat truly killed Paige as part of some plan, then who knows what other atrocities would be committed if nothing was done about it. And what about this Nabonidus guy they kept hearing about? What about Tinsel- how did she connect to all of this and that Wisp maniac in the first place? There were so many questions that needed answering and it felt like they were running out of time.

He thought about telling his friends, but quickly decided not to, and placed it back inside his jacket. He did not feel the need to bring his friends into any more of his personal matters or drama for now, as there was work to be done.

The group made their way up to the doors of the Archives. They were incredibly decrepit and extremely tall as well. To the Dreamkeepers' surprise, it looked as if someone had already been inside before it was sealed- as the doors were slightly ajar. They looked at each other, and then back to the door. Bast walked forward, volunteering to enter the doorway first. Lilith handed him the star-squid, and he cautiously stepped inside. The others could hear slight scuffs and bumps coming from the entry area as they waited for Bast's return.

The boy in question suddenly poked his head out through the slip in the door, slightly startling everyone. "Coast's clear, guys. Come on in!"Bast told them, and slipped back inside. The others followed suit, stepping over the rubble that crowded the doorway and through the decrepit doors. As they entered the front hall, Bast stood there with star-squid orb in hand, waiting for them. "Lilith, this place doesn't look all that much like a library to me," said Bast. "In fact, I wasn't able to find a single book or scroll in these three rooms in the front…" he added.

"That's because these Archives were constructed during the Silent Centuries," Lilith replied. "That means the architects who built this place would have placed the chamber that the building was purposed for in the far back-center of the structure. That's where the rest of the piping that leads to all of the archived information comes to its end. The area below that room should be what we're looking for," Lilith explained without skipping a beat. She began to walk into the next room, while the others followed closely behind.

Within a few minutes and surprisingly with no trouble at all, the group made it to what Lilith presumed to be the correct room. It looked to be circular in shape and possessed a tall ceiling. It was as dark as the rest of the place, and empty bookshelves along with pedestals lined the walls. In the center of the room was a circular pattern that was emblazoned on the floor. In the center of said pattern was the end of the pipe that extended upwards through the structure itself as well as the Sabatton Towers.

"Okay, this has to be it!" Lilith observed once she saw the pipe.

"Yehnah!" Whip exclaimed, and performed a loop in the air.

Suddenly, almost out of nowhere, a light whirlwind began to encircle the group. They all looked at each other, unsure of what to make of it. "Where's this coming from?" Namah asked.

Immediately, the whirlwind grew stronger, effectively enclosing everyone in the group. Bast noticed this, and tried to break through the raging circle of wind. "UGH!" he cried as it ended up knocking him on his back. Whip tried to fly above the mini-cyclone but it was no use. He was just as easily buffeted down to the ground as Bast was.

"Everyone get together!" Lilith yelled as loud as she could over the maddening wail of the wind. They all obeyed, and huddled together- hoping that the bizarre and frightening vortex would dissipate on its own. However, it didn't, and instead it grew even more powerful. All of a sudden, a brilliant light blared over the group. The light became blinding, as the vortex continued to swirl uncontrollably. Then something even stranger occurred. The Dreamkeepers could feel the light envelop them and pierce through their very bodies. They all shut their eyes as hard as they could, and a few moments later, a deafening **ZZZKKTTT **was heard, followed by an incredibly overwhelming sensation of acceleration. They all felt themselves be whisked away by some unseen force, catching them completely off guard. No one could see where they were or where they were going. All they knew was that they were being fired through a seemingly never-ending tunnel of blinding light.

They could no longer hear their own thoughts, or contemplate which direction they were facing. The young Dreamkeepers had never felt anything like this, as not even simple teleportation via telepads was this rigorous. Somehow, they all found the strength to open their eyes, which allowed them to see past the potent light. It was then that they witnessed the most incredibly amazing yet odd sight they had ever laid eyes on. Flying past them at ridiculous speeds were stars, like the ones they would see in the night sky above Anduruna. Although now they could see swirling shapes that encompassed thousands of stars at once as well as colored vortexes. However, the overwhelming light enveloped them once more, but this time they could sense that they were starting to slow down. Their acceleration quickly began to wind down until it screamed to a standstill, leaving the group in a cosmic suspension while blinded by light. This sudden change of speed was so jarring that their heads seemed to swim with disorientation.

There wasn't much time to contemplate this, however, as they suddenly witnessed the light clearing up and disappearing around them. Rattled by the change in exposure, the teens could barely comprehend what had happened… before they began to fall through the air. They yelled and screamed in fear as they rapidly descended, thinking that they were going to die, until they realized that some ground was only about ten feet below them when they hit it. The whole group landed on the unforgiving floor of this unknown location, and laid there like slugs for a good three minutes- staring up at a familiar blue sky with no noise coming from or around them. They were still very unsure of what just happened to them, and simply did not know what to do other than to try and recount their experience.

0ooOoo0

_?_

The first to get up was Bast, who was equally as traumatized as the rest of his companions, but still able to amass enough strength to weakly stand up. With a rather feeble rise to his feet, the boy stumbled a bit, but effectively corrected himself from falling back down. He looked around for a few brief seconds, and then down to the rest of his group. "What. The. FUCK…" he managed to pant between heavy breaths.

Lilith lay with her eyes staring straight up at the sky, almost like she was dead. Thankfully though, this was not the case, as Bast slowly walked up to her to see if she was alright. She responded almost immediately, but continued to stare with her wide, stupefied eyes. "Are we dead?" Lilith asked him in a shell-shocked manner. Bast looked from her, to the others, and back to her almost emotionlessly.

"I don't think so…" Bast droned. "How… do you feel?" he then asked her.

"Alright I guess…" Lilith deadpanned. Bast shakily extended his gloved hand to help Lilith up, and after staring at it for a few seconds, she took it. As she weakly rose to her feet, Lilith felt dizzy at first. She shook her head, and that seemed to make her feel a little better. Then, they heard a familiar yet disturbing laugh coming from nearby.

"Heh heh heh hah ha ha he ha hah heh heh heh!" Namah laughed as she faced the sky while lying on the ground. She seemed to be delirious from their trip, and was now cackling like a mental patient. Bast walked up to her, and stared her straight in the eyes in an attempt to snap her out of her delirium. This seemed to work, as Namah started to wind down her laughter and slightly close her eyes. When she finally stopped giggling, she slowly opened her eyes, and saw Bast standing above her. "Heeeey, yoooooou! How'd we get out of that… place soooo fast?" Namah asked in a rather loopy manner.

"I'm not entirely sure, Namah," Bast replied, and held out his hand for her to grab. "Let's get up and talk to the others to see what they think," he added. She weakly grabbed his hand and he pulled her to her feet.

"Lemme see if I can stand up properly…" Namah replied, and let go of Bast's hand as she tried to stand up on her own- which was not easy given the condition she was in. She wobbled about for a second, and then began to fall backwards. "Noooope…" she sighed, and fell back on the ground. Bast went back to work trying to get her up, while Lilith turned her attention to Mace and Whip now that she knew her sister was alright for the most part.

Now that Lilith could walk in a straight line, she walked over to the two boys who were still lying on the ground. Mace felt her shadow fall across his face, which temporarily shielded it from the hot sun. He opened his eyes a little and sighed. "Lilith…" Mace moaned in near agony. "What the hell happened?"

"It looks like we've been transported from the Archives to… wherever this is…" Lilith explained. "The others are okay, how are you and Whip doing?" she asked in concern.

"Well, I reckon I've got at least five broken bones, a ruptured spleen, permanent brain damage, and above all- I might be paralyzed," Mace replied weakly. He then perked his ears up and looked at Lilith. "I… I'm not serious about that, I'm… kidding… just trying to make light of the situation," he added, and dropped his head back down.

"That's good to hear then," Lilith replied, and looked over at Whip. "How about you, Whip? Can you hear me?" she asked the little blue Dreamkeeper as she walked over to him. He noticed her and held out his nubby little arms toward her and made a dramatic sighing noise.

"Huyuna gardini-lomanu?" Whip asked her.

"What did he say?" Lilith asked Mace, who was slowly beginning to sit up.

"He asked if you were an angel," Mace replied with no amusement in his voice whatsoever.

Lilith looked at Whip briefly, and nodded. "Okay, I guess he checks out then," she observed. To Whips dismay, she looked away from him and over at the others. Bast had finally gotten Namah to stand up straight, and it looked as if she would now be able to walk correctly. Mace got to his feet, and picked Whip up by his comically huge ears. Little Whip hung in the air as his friend held him, and started to blink his eyes. Mace released him, and he almost immediately floated in the air before he dropped back to the ground. Lilith then saw her and Namah's duffle bag that contained their belongings for their journey. She walked over to it and opened it. After looking inside, she surmised that everything was there, including their rations and medical supplies. However, the star-squid that she had before was nowhere to be found. "Okay, our stuff seems to be intact for the most part," she observed, and moved the bag closer to the others.

Since they were back on their feet, and it seemed that they were free of any injuries, the Dreamkeepers began to observe their surroundings. It was obviously day time wherever they were, but the sun felt just a bit hotter than what they were used to. It looked as if they were in a small clearing covered in dirt, which contained a few gray rocks and green shrubs. They clearing was surrounded by tall, strange flo-trees. At least that is what they theorized them to be. Mace approached one of the tall trees and put his hand to its trunk. After touching it for a few seconds, he suddenly pulled his hand away as if he had been spooked. "Guys… This isn't flo-wood…" he said in a confused manner. "It feels really different- like scratchy and uneven. It's not smooth at all!"

"Okay, so these aren't flo-trees then," Lilith replied, and joined Mace by the tree. She touched its trunk as well, and came to the same conclusion. "Nope. Definitely not!" she observed, and looked at Mace. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen any tree like this in any of the Dreamworld botany almanacs- it's really weird!" she added.

A few feet away, Namah nudged Bast in the arm. "Told you she was a huge nerd!" she said quietly.

Mace and Lilith went back over to Bast, Whip, and Namah, unsure of what to say.

"Where do you think we are?" Namah asked as she scratched her head.

"I really don't know…" her sister replied. The rest of them looked around some more, this time at the skyline. They were obviously in the presence of mountains and hills, which were actually things that they were familiar with. There was also the faint smell of salt-water, indicating that they may be near a coastline.

"Maybe we're just really far outside of Anduruna, or on the other side of the Starfall Mountains," Bast suggested after scanning the landscape.

"Maybe we're on the other side of the Dreamworld…" Mace suggested as his eyes grew a bit wide at the thought of such a possibility.

"Well instead of guessing, we should probably see if we can get a better view away from all of these trees," Lilith replied, and the others agreed.

"Let's try that ridge up there," Mace said, and pointed the others toward a craggy hilltop that was not far from their current position. With Mace leading the way, the young Dreamkeepers steadily made their way up the rocky hill. Feeling like they were back in the Starfall Mountains, they were now all too familiar with rock-climbing techniques. Once Mace made it to the top, he kept his head looking backwards at the others to see if they could make it up the hill. Whip quickly joined him as he floated up to Mace's position. Mace kept looking at the others who were right behind him.

"I'm up guys! Me 'n Whip will just…" he began to say, but stopped halfway when he felt Whip rapidly tapping his shoulder. The boy briefly looked at Whip, who was staring wide-eyed in silence at something he presumed to be in the distance, while frantically pointing with his little arms. Mace looked for himself, and then developed the same expression that Whip had. As the others finally made it to the top, they noticed Mace and Whip's behavior. They saw that they were looking into the distance, so they did as well. The rest of the group's jaws dropped at what they could see in the distance.

It looked to be a collection of square structures mixed in with other buildings of various shapes and sizes. To the Dreamkeepers, it looked to be a rather large city- although it did not look like any city they could ever imagine. Although none of the buildings were anywhere near as big as the Sabbaton Towers, there were more humongous buildings here than when compared to Anduruna. It was situated on the edge of a desert that was peppered with lush groves in a few places, surrounded by much smaller hills and mountains in addition to more trees. There also seemed to be an ocean that lay from the right side of the strange city and farther beyond. There was also a huge network of paved roads, sometimes supported on stone bridges, running up to the metropolis that served bizarre and fast groundcars that also seemed to be running without any manekales or kerricks, much to their amazement.

"What the…" Mace gasped.

"Where In the hell did we end up exactly?" Bast remarked.

"Heh, no walls!" Namah observed dryly. "The people who live here must be really friendly, then," she added as if she was reaching a profound conclusion.

"Your guesses are as good as mine…" Lilith replied in awe. "All I know is that we're definitely not close to home anymore…"

Suddenly, a low roar could be heard in the distance behind them. It seemed to be getting louder and louder as if it was coming towards them. They all listened, and figured out that it was coming from the sky above them. The roar transitioned from loud to deafening almost instantly as they looked upwards. Above them, they saw a roughly triangular shape flying in the sky over the ocean at an incredibly fast velocity.

The object, which the Dreamkeepers presumed to be an aircraft of some kind, turned left from the ocean and banked over the city, making the top of the craft become more visible. It was colored two different shades of gray in a camouflage pattern and there were strange, almost alien markings covering a majority of the craft's surface. They could also see a cockpit of some kind near its nose. The aircraft came back around over the forest behind the Dreamkeepers and made one more pass around their group. The Dreamkeepers were beginning to get nervous, as they started to think that the craft, whatever it could be, was observing them. They briefly thought about running into the trees, but there was no telling what the craft could do if they tried to run. All they could do was stand their ground and keep an eye on the fast-moving machine. They were a little relieved to see it continue on a path over the city and towards the desert, leaving them behind.

"Well, that was weird…" Namah remarked. "Was someone in there? And if so, were they checking us out?"

"Probably! Knowing our luck…" Mace replied and crossed his arms.

"I'd rather not stay here to find out," Bast commented.

"Then we should leave now," Lilith suggested. "We might be able to get information and directions from that city down there. It looks like our best bet..."

"Yeah, its not that late in the day, and we should get as much traveling done as we can in daylight," Bast added.

They gathered their supplies, and began to carefully walk down the rocky edges of the long hill. What could this new city have in store for them? And would they even be able to make it back to Anduruna? Time was in short supply, and they needed to find a way to get back to the Archives. They had to find a weakness to the Nightmares, or else their entire world could be doomed.

Unbeknownst to them however, a chain of events had already been set in motion that would change the face of not only their world, but all worlds as well.

**End of Chapter 3…**

**(1) The Dreamworld City of Anduruna: **The Dreamkeeper city of Anduruna is quite possibly the largest city to ever grace the Dreamworld. It boasts a circumference of 440 miles, and is enclosed on three sides by a gigantic, ancient wall known by the Dreamkeepers as the "Sky Road". It is in a very desirable location as well, with the beautiful ranges of the Starfall Mountains to the north, south, and west- and the glistening, vibrant waters of the Alchera Ocean to the East. The city's most profound architectural achievements, the Sabbaton Towers, are located in the geographical center on Anduruna, and they house the political elite and higher-class citizens. They contain within them a remarkable 250 floors of living spaces, gardens, schools, universities, libraries, media studios, prisons, and courts. Underneath the towers is a different story. The undersides of the towers contain the majority of the prisons, maintenance areas, and storerooms. Go a bit further, and you will find large caverns where the supports to the towers can be found, and these are often visited by schoolchildren on class trips.


	4. Chapter 4: Rise and Shine

***Special Note: () = See Footnote Section***

**Chapter 4: Rise and Shine**

_As his vision faded away, and he felt his legs become weak to the point where they would collapse, a particular man attempted to find the strength necessary to fight back these creeping sensations of helplessness. _

_He wanted to stay awake, to comprehend the life-changing events that had just occurred. He wanted to stay conscious to give comfort to his companion who had just lost her father. _

_She kneeled over the body of her recently-deceased father, not far from where this man was collapsing. He fought to keep his eyes open, so that he may know what else would transpire this fateful day. _

"_No!" the once optimistic young woman cried. "Dad, please! Dad! Please don't leave me!" _

"_Alyx…" the man whom was fainting murmured. "Eli…" _

_He could no longer fight the power that was somehow causing him to collapse to the floor during his friend's darkest hour. His vision finally faded, and he could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness…_

"_Come back, Mr. Freeman…" the fainting man heard a familiar, wavering voice say. _

_He recognized his tone and demeanor as the one who put him in stasis all those years ago and also as the one who awoke him from stasis not too long ago. _

_He knew that this was the G-Man, speaking to him once again. But for what reason? As his unconsciousness began to ebb away and transform into a whole new feeling entirely, Freeman blinked his eyes and saw stars and planets streaming past him. He was definitely not being put into stasis again, so what exactly was all of this?_

"_This is not my… doing, Freeman," the blue-suited G-Man said to him as his image popped in and out of existence. _

_This confused Freeman to a great degree. "Other… forces are causing this teleportation, Freeman…" the G-Man explained. _

"_I d-don't understand!" Freeman gasped as the incredible scene of stars and planets continued to scream past the both of them. _

"_As… expected, Freeman," the G-Man replied with a smirk. "You are being sent to a reality that is… a bit less hostile," he added. _

"_What?" Freeman asked, still trying to make heads or tails of the situation. _

"_This is… where I leave you, Freeman," the G-Man said. _

"_What the hell is going on?" Freeman demanded suddenly, but the G-Man didn't seem to respond to this change in Freeman's attitude. _

"_My influence is beginning… to fail, Freeman…" the G-Man replied. Freeman furrowed his brow, not knowing what the G-Man was talking about. "I won't be able to reach you… where you are going…"_

"_Where am I going?" Freeman asked. _

"_I cannot tell for certain, Mr. Freeman…" the G-Man responded. _

"_What about the Combine? What about the Resistance? What caused this?" Freeman asked frantically as he remembered the urgency he was just in. _

"_You may find those answers on… your own, Mr. Freeman…" the G-Man replied, and began to fade away from the whole scene. _

"_Wait!" Freeman found himself shouting, as the G-Man receded from his view and a bright, blue light enveloped his entire field of vision. "I need some answers!" Freeman called out, but the G-Man was gone. The blue light spread and intensified, and Freeman felt himself slip back into unconsciousness._

0ooOoo0

"Gordon! Please, wake up!" Freeman heard another familiar voice call out. He noticed that he was regaining consciousness after the psychedelic episode with the G-Man, and he could feel that he was lying on the hard ground.

"Please, wake up! I need you to stay with me!" the voice pleaded with him, as his blurred vision began to restore. The haziness melted away with a few blinks, and he could tell that he was in fact lying on some cold, hard ground on his back. He ached all over, and his head was still swimming from the experience he had beforehand. He recognized the voice as Alyx Vance, his good friend and the daughter of the recently-deceased Eli Vance.

"Oh good, you're coming back!" Alyx exclaimed as Gordon began to sit up. He rubbed his head and felt his face. Alyx sighed, and pulled out his glasses from a pocket on her jacket. "Looking for these, Gordon?" she asked him, and Gordon nodded. "You lost them when we got here." He took the glasses, which were in a usable condition, and placed them back on his head. He blinked a few times before looking at Alyx.

"W-what the hell happened?" he asked Alyx as his eyes wandered around the area they found themselves in. It was a gloomy, seemingly-abandoned pavilion of sorts, with plant-beds and benches all throughout. He could see that beyond some cracked pillars, there was a locked, chain-link gate leading outwards into bustling streets. He looked upward, and saw a few beautiful buildings and skyscrapers extending beyond the high walls of the pavilion. He and Alyx were the only ones around, and other than the indications of city-life beyond the rusty gate it was, for the most part, tranquil.

"I'm not entirely sure…" she replied honestly. "I was by my father's side as he died, and you were there, too," Alyx began.

"So… he really is gone?" Gordon asked sensitively.

Alyx nodded, still visibly shaken and saddened. "He's really gone, Gordon," she explained, with her voice catching in her throat slightly. "My robot, Dog, isn't here either. And now the Combine **(1) **might know everything about the Resistance and the Borealis **(2)**…"

"Damn… worse than I thought," Gordon frowned.

"You began to collapse and fell into unconsciousness. I tried to get you to wake up, but you wouldn't budge," Alyx continued. "I tried to drag you over to Dog, and then… out of nowhere we were wrapped in a bright blue light and energy that sounded like some sort of electricity!"

"After that?" Gordon urged her to continue.

"The light grew brighter until I couldn't see you or Dog… I felt like I was being thrown through space, because I saw planets and stars flying past me," she explained in detail. Gordon was somewhat shocked that Alyx's account of what happened to her sounded almost exactly like what he had just gone through- minus the G-Man of course.

"That's what I remember happening after I blacked out!" Gordon found himself saying.

"Then this is starting to make more sense…" Alyx responded and adjusted her jacket. "After that, the light grew bright again, and before I knew it, I was levitating above the ground inside this pavilion with you beside me," she continued. "We both fell to the ground, with you still unconscious. I tried to bring you back again, and that time, you actually woke up… now here we are!"

Gordon and Alyx both looked to the bits of skyline that they could see beyond the dilapidated walls of the pavilion, and the two took note of how in-tact everything appeared. "What do you think did that to us?" Alyx asked him.

"Not a clue, Alyx…" Gordon began. "But whatever it was, it wasn't caused by us. That much I'm certain of."

"You think it was the Combine? Or maybe an after affect of closing that super-portal?" Alyx asked.

"Could be either possibility- or neither. However, I'm gonna bet on the latter of those choices being the cause," Gordon replied. "The Black Mesa Array may have had some unforeseen consequences to its use…" he added, suddenly having flashbacks about the Black Mesa Incident years before. "Anyway, if the Combine are gathering information on the Resistance, then we need to move fast!" he hurriedly explained.

"I guess we're probably not anywhere near White Forest anymore, so we need a plan for getting back there and finding the Borealis as quickly as we can," Alyx added with a hint of exhaustion.

"Agreed," Gordon replied with a nod. He stood up and looked down at his chest, and saw that his HEV suit was still intact and fully functioning. Gordon could also see that his trusty crowbar rested not too far from where he and Alyx appeared. The physicist walked over to the crowbar and picked it up, earning a tiny smile from Alyx. He looked over at the rusted gate they saw before, and spoke to Alyx. "Okay then, let's find out exactly where we are…"

0ooOoo0

During the day, Paige had planned to ask the scientists more questions about how she was brought to the lab, but remembered that they were on some sort of schedule that determined when they would work on other… experiments. In the meantime, she kept herself busy by exploring Mr. Cojita's quarters that was connected to the main lab, and looking over the world outside through the big window. The laboratory was a part of a huge complex that encompassed botanical gardens, recreational areas, commercial centers, and Channel City University. As Paige watched the scenes of life on the outside, she decided to walk into the next room, which served as the penthouse den- a place to enjoy books, music, or television. It was just as lavish as the rest of Uzara's living quarters, with high-quality red carpet and expensive, rare art pieces hanging on the walls. It is here that Paige located one of her newfound friends.

Doctor Hanford was sitting on a lounge chair in the penthouse den, dressed in more casual attire and reading a novel. He could see Paige walking over to him, so he put the book down and gave his attention to her. "Hello, Paige. How are you doing so far?" the old scientist asked in his friendly manner. Paige walked closer to him, and set her eyes on his book.

"Mr. Hanford? What is that you're reading?" she asked curiously. "It looks neat…" she added. Hanford smiled and picked up the book to show to the young Dreamkeeper.

"Ah, this is one of my favorites!" Hanford replied cheerfully. "It's called The Lord of the Rings, and it was written by a man named John Ronald Reuel Tolkien sixty years ago," he explained.

"Wow, it's that old?" Paige asked, becoming more interested. She took a seat next to Hanford on an ottoman, and peered over at the book.

"That it is, Paige," Hanford replied. "Its very good, though."

"What is it about?" Paige asked, wanting to know more.

"Well, its about a ring, like the title suggests, but not just any ring. It is a ring of power. The ring is found, and these short, fat little men known as Hobbits must travel across their world to destroy it inside a mountain of fire- before the Dark Lord Sauron can find them and reclaim the ring," Hanford told her.

"Oh wow! That's such an awesome idea for a story!" Paige replied enthusiastically, which amused Hanford. "I had a friend named Bobby back in my world. He used to tell the best bedtime stories to all of us orphans, unless he wasn't able to be there a certain night. Then, my other friend, Vi would fill in for him- but her stories were never as good as Bobby's," she excitedly said to Hanford, who lost a little bit of his smile as she explained the last part.

"Paige, you're… an orphan?" he asked sensitively. Paige looked back at him as she just recalled what she had said.

"Oh… yeah…" she replied sadly. Hanford looked at Paige and sat up.

"I'm so sorry, young one…" he said to her, and brought her into a gentle hug. She gladly accepted it, as she was beginning to feel the weight of her previous life swing back to hit her over the head. She composed herself however, and was careful not to start crying. Hanford released her from the hug, and stood up. "I had no idea… none of us had any idea that your parents were gone!" he said.

"It's alright, I didn't tell you guys when I met you," Paige replied.

"I hope you don't think badly of us-," Hanford began to say, but the little Dreamkeeper stopped him.

"I don't Mr. Hanford," Paige responded. "Now that I think about it, I actually want to thank you all for giving me a second chance in your world." Hanford was actually surprised to be hearing this.

Hanford kneeled down to her level and gave her another consoling hug. "It's alright, Paige. We'll all be here to help you through this, no matter what," he said to her as if she was his own daughter. As Dr. Hanford embraced the impressionable Paige, she could feel a familiar sense of comfort that she hadn't experienced in years. It was at this time that she began to seriously contemplate the possibility of staying with the friendly scientists and Uzara for the rest of her life. In this moment, she felt as if she could truly accept them as friends.

"Hanford!" Dr. Linden called from the laboratory. "Come here, Mr. Cojita needs our assistance in the lab!"

Hanford released Paige and stood back up. "Coming, Linden!" he yelled back, and then looked down at Paige. "I have to go work in the lab for a bit, okay? We should all be done in a bit though, so when we are we'll all read some more stories together before bed, alright?" he added and winked at her with a smile.

"Alright!" Paige replied happily as she nodded. Hanford left the room to go to the laboratory, so she walked over to another lounge chair across from the one Hanford was in, and sat down on it. She began to feel a bit lonely with no one around, and she figured that the scientists would be working for a few more hours.

"_Mace and Whip would have a blast here! But they'd probably break all of Mr. Uzara's stuff…" _Paige thought to herself, and wondered what they could be doing back in the Dreamworld at that time…

0ooOoo0

Upon hearing his name called, Dr. Hanford walked briskly into the laboratory where Uzara and the other scientists were waiting. "There you are, Dr. Hanford," Uzara greeted flatly. Hanford walked by his boss and stood with the other scientists across from him.

"She's an orphan," Hanford said to Uzara as he shot a stern look at him.

"Oh is she?" Uzara asked as if he was only slightly interested.

"Yes, an orphan!" Hanford snapped back. "Did she tell you that when you first talked to her?" he asked.

"Unfortunately no," Uzara replied coldly. "But now that we do know, we will make all of the necessary accommodations for her…"

"That's… good to know," Hanford replied warily. Uzara just shot him an ornery glare.

"Anyway…" Uzara began. "I'm now going to ask you exactly what we've all been grappling with ever since our successful test with the Cosmic Key. What caused it to become unstable after our seemingly successful test?" he asked.

"We still do not know, Sir," Linden replied, and scratched his head.

"How can that be?" Uzara murmured, sounding quite annoyed.

"We ran tests on the damned thing all through the night!" Watterson responded, also sounding a bit peeved. "Nothing we evaluated seems to be the cause of the problem- and we're no close to figuring out the solution than when we started…" he explained.

"Hmm," Uzara rubbed his chin, and walked over to a nearby table laden with chemistry equipment. He turned to face the scientists again. "Has our little friend told us anything that might point us in the right direction?" he asked them.

The four scientists thought for a moment, trying to remember what Paige had been saying since she got there and if there were any clues within what she was saying.

"Eh, not anything that I can remember…" Mason replied.

"The most we've gotten out of Paige about her past and her recent experiences is the fact that she lives in a large Dreamkeeper city called 'Anduruna', and that she has a few good friends," Watterson explained.

"And I just found out that she's actually an orphan- and subsequently lives in an orphanage…" Hanford added, and frowned a bit.

Uzara thought about the information the scientists had given him. It wasn't a whole lot to work with, either. "That sort of information will get us nowhere…" he commented. "I don't believe that any of that had anything to do with the Cosmic Key malfunctioning."

"Maybe we should read up on the history of this relic…" Mason suggested. Dr. Hanford put his hand up and pointed at the containment chamber they were keeping the Key inside.

"I already know the history of this artifact!" Hanford responded, and the other scientists suddenly remembered why the Key was there in their laboratory in the first place.

"Ah, that's right!" Linden spoke up. "You're the one who brought it here to the campus from your old job at Aperture!" he said, and grinned at Hanford.

"That's true…" Watterson remarked. "That was like, five years ago, wasn't it?"

"Yes, before I met all of you on this project," Hanford explained.

"We spent forever trying to get clearance to run experiments on that thing, and look where we are now…" Mason recalled.

"Yes, yes, how could anyone forget?" Hanford sighed. "Anyway, you lot haven't heard the 'known' history of the Cosmic Key, so I'll fill you in…"

"This should be interesting…" Uzara commented. Even though Uzara was the administrator of the project, the known history of the Cosmic Key had never been relayed to him.

Hanford took a quick look at everyone in the room, and then began to speak. "The Cosmic Key, which is what one of Aperture's previous clients referred to it as, was first discovered near an oil refinery in a more hospitable part of Siberia in the year 1957. The Key was discovered inside a cave not far from the facility, and it seemed as if it had crash –landed there from outer space. The Soviet government at the time took a great interest in the discovery, and immediately requested that experiments be conducted on the artifact. However, they decided to keep it a secret so that they could test the object on their terms. Now, they weren't able to conduct experiments to the extent that we have, because the bulk of the initial tests were done between the 1950's and 80's. The technology back then was not able to do the things that recent advances in science allow us to do.

Anyway, they performed some very strange experiments on the Key… the only one I can remember at the moment involved a Russian "space-dog" in its space-suit being transported somewhere using the power of the Key… however, no one knows for sure how that experiment really turned out. They kept their discovery under lock and key for several decades. That is, until the Cold War came to a close. With the dissolve of the Soviet regime, the majority of the documents pertaining to the Cosmic Key and the experiments conducted on it were either burned, stolen, or hidden away. Only a few bare-bones accounts still remain. As a matter of fact, Channel City University has come into possession of a portion of the documents…" Hanford explained.

"So, judging by those documents, did the Russians ever return any results that could possibly help us figure out what the heck is going on with the Key?" Linden asked, becoming more interested. "Or was there at least some accounts about the Key becoming unstable just like it did here?"

Hanford shook his head. "No, Dr. Linden," he replied. "Nothing in the surviving and available documents describes anything like this…"

"Alright then, continue on!" Linden replied, and crossed his arms.

Hanford continued. "After the fiasco with the documents, in 1997, the facility containing the Cosmic Key was broken into, and the Key was stolen. To this day, no one knows who is responsible for that theft. However, the new government in Russia simply decided that the relic stolen from them was nothing but a hangover from the Soviet-Era (probably because of the missing information), and they let it go without a fight. Surprisingly enough, the Key resurfaced just one year later- in a Black Market auction being bartered for from the hands of the now-infamous Imran Zakhaev and his political party- the Ultranationalists."

"You mean the people that are now in charge of Russia after that Civil War in 2011?" Mason asked.

"Sort of…" Hanford replied. "Zakhaev was the leader of the extremist camp in the party, but it is the moderate branch that is leading the country now. The extremists are still around, but they have little power, and they are led by another guy. But anyway, he was able to auction off the Cosmic Key to an anonymous buyer. This anonymous buyer remained silent for years after obtaining the Cosmic Key. That is, until the individual came to Aperture Science as a client years later. I was working there in 2005 when the person contacted our establishment, and asked if we could… take a look at the Cosmic Key for him. We obliged, even though the object had a seedy history, and got to work on observing the relic. However, something strange happened…"

"What?" Watterson asked.

"My 'administrator' (if you could even call her that), ordered me to leave Aperture Science after a solid four years of observing the Cosmic Key… what's even stranger, is that she told me to take one of the Keys with me to wherever I ended up, and to keep it safe from any suspicious interested parties," Hanford explained, catching the attention of Uzara.

"Wait… _Keys_?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"S-sorry, I meant to say _Key_," Hanford replied. "Give me a break, Uzara, I've been spewing exposition here for the past six minutes!" he chuckled.

"I see…" Uzara replied with a neutral gaze.

"Yes…" Hanford replied. "And here we are now, starting a whole new string of experiments on this Key," he remarked.

"So now we have this Cosmic Key… but how do you know its called a 'Cosmic Key'?" Linden asked with interest.

"Well, I didn't give it the name. The client at Aperture I just mentioned is the one who kept referring to it as the 'Cosmic Key'," Hanford responded. "Who knows what its really called… I'm sure the Soviets had their own name for it as well."

"Hmm. You think they called it 'Spot Remover'?" Watterson remarked as he remembered the part about the experiment with the dog. The other scientists chuckled a bit at Watterson's usual wit that he showed even in the most serious of situations.

"Anyway, does any of what you observed while at Aperture Science yield any clues as to what is going on with the Key becoming unstable?" Uzara asked suddenly, becoming visibly anxious to find a solution for their problem.

"I can't say that there was…" Hanford explained. "The Key never became unstable at Aperture. And you all know that the Key never became unstable in our hands until now. The only thing I can say without a doubt in my mind, is that the Cosmic Key is a wholly unpredictable artifact. Remember, it can transport beings and objects all over the Multiverse… and that kind of power is not to be taken lightly."

The air became heavier, as the room full of scientists could not deny that the Key had immense, unpredictable power.

"Well, even though the research documents for the Key are almost all lost, aren't there still living scientists that studied the Key?" Mason asked. "Wouldn't we be able to contact them and arrange some sort of communication or collaboration for working on this problem together?"

Watterson and Linden thought this to be a good idea, and looked at Hanford, who closed his eyes. "Unfortunately, that is not the case anymore," Hanford replied, getting confused looks from his colleagues.

"What do you mean?" Linden asked.

Hanford continued. "Suspiciously, many of the scientists who performed said experiments on the Key have either been found dead- murdered inside their own homes, or have disappeared completely…" he explained quietly.

"What?!" Watterson exclaimed. "Are you serious?"

"Well then… I guess that plan is out of the question…" Linden remarked.

"Who do you think would do such a thing?" Mason asked, feeling a bit shocked.

"To be honest, I have no idea…" Hanford responded. However, in the back of his mind, he believed that he had a pretty good idea as to who was responsible.

"Does… does that mean that _we'll_ become targets soon?" Watterson stammered.

"I am not sure," Uzara replied. "But we cannot lull around all day fretting about it! We need to uncover the reason behind the Cosmic Key's malfunction, and fast! We are wasting precious time for experimenting…" he said, and walked back in the direction of his quarters- obviously anxious about finding a solution.

"What's his problem?" Mason asked, and rolled his eyes.

"Doesn't matter, Mason," Hanford sighed. "We need to get a move on with more diagnostics- so get some rest, and be back in the lab by tonight. We have a lot of work still ahead of us!"

**End of Chapter 4…**

**(1) The Combine: **A massive and powerful interdimensional organization composed of enslaved and allied species. Their ultimate goal of the Combine is to create an Interdimensional Empire known as the Universal Union and to dominate the Multiverse. It is unknown exactly who is leading the Combine.

**(2) The Borealis: **An Aperture Science research vessel built in a rush to beat Black Mesa for funding. The builders neglected safety precautions and as a result, parts of the ship and its dry dock simply disappeared. It is believed that the _Borealis _contains a powerful and dangerous secret, likely involving portals and teleportation on a large scale. This gives an ample reason as to why the Combine are searching for it.


	5. Chapter 5: Contact

***Special Note: () = See Footnote Section***

**Chapter 5: Contact**

It took the Dreamkeepers roughly an hour to reach the bottom of the steep series of hills where consistently level ground was located. Along the way down, the group encountered more of the same scenery they had seen once they arrived in this odd place. Nothing but tall trees, shrubs, brown dirt, and gray rocks as far as the eye could see. They would hear a strange sound every now and then, but they figured that the local wildlife was responsible for that. The kids had finally reached the bottom of the embankments and proceeded to trek across a mostly open stretch of land that lay between the mountains and the city they were traveling towards. They could see the paved road with the fast-traveling groundcars in the distance to their right, but they didn't dare tread any closer than they had to for fear of them being caught for trespassing- if there was even such a punishment to be had in this situation. All of them continuously scanned their surroundings for any hint of danger, but so far they could detect nothing of the sort. The only emotion that was in no short supply was anticipation.

As they continued their approach, the Dreamkeepers could see how big the buildings that they first saw from far away really were. They seemed quite tall and intimidating to them already, and the travelers were only halfway to the edge of the city. Although none of the buildings were anywhere near as big as the Sabbaton Towers, there were more humongous buildings here than when compared to Anduruna.

On the way down the mountain, Lilith had reminded them that they might be very, very far away from Anduruna. That complicated their entire situation for sure, as the citizens might not even speak their same language.

Within the hour, the group had made it to the very edge of the imposing city. Namah directed the others toward an opening that had been made in a wooden fence bordering a discreet alleyway. They all walked through, and entered an alley that looked very much like the ones back in Anduruna. It was strewn with garbage cans, boxes, and outdoor piping just like they would expect. Really, all that was missing were clotheslines laden with drying undergarments and t-shirts. This gave them a small amount of comfort, for they could feel a sense of familiarity in albeit the rather dingy alleyway. Perhaps the city was only foreign and intimidating on the outside. Maybe once they got out onto the street, they would feel less confused and helpless after seeing other Dreamkeepers.

The children walked out the end of the cramped alleyway… and into the very kind of thing that would enhance their confusion rather than reduce it. Before their utterly bewildered and entranced eyes, the group saw dozens upon dozens of what they assumed to be Dreamkeepers- that all looked almost exactly the same. They were dressed about as normal as the kids would expect; some wore suits, others wore casual attire, while a few wore what they would describe as "counter-culture" garbs. Some of them were either looking at or talking into small devices that could fit in the palm of their hand. They wondered what this could be, until one of the pedestrians walked by their alley and they could hear what he was saying.

"No wait, Samuel! I need those schematics to be finished and sent to Liu Wei in Beijing by the twenty-eighth! You can't leave early tonight if we're in the middle of a big project like this… fine, I'll call you later and we can discuss it further!" the man said as he held the device, and then pressed a button on what appeared to be a very small screen. The Dreamkeepers assumed that the device must be used for communicating, which they thought was very incredible. The only communication devices that they were familiar with were data-scrolls, and those were much bigger than what the man had. Perhaps Mace was partly right in guessing that this city was partially more advanced than Anduruna.

"What IS this place?" Bast found himself asking out loud.

"Did anyone listen closely to what that guy was saying?" Lilith asked the others. "What's Beijing?"

"Uh… a sound that you make when you sneeze?" Mace replied sheepishly.

"I'm being serious here, Mace," Bast replied in a rather annoyed tone, and turned back towards Lilith and Namah. Mace just mouthed Bast's words silently back at him and rolled his eyes after he turned away, much to Whip's amusement.

"I've never heard of that place before…" Lilith replied. She thought for a few seconds, and looked at her friends. "I don't know. We should try and get some answers before night falls and we're stuck outside without a place to sleep," she explained.

"So, we just go out there and ask someone where we are and how to get back to Anduruna?" Mace asked.

"Precisely, and the sooner we get it done, the better!" Lilith replied with an encouraging smile.

"Sounds like a plan!" Namah commented.

"Hang on guys…" Bast interjected. "Shouldn't we try to, I dunno… disguise ourselves a bit? I mean these people don't seem like your average Dreamkeepers, and we look really different compared to them. In case we stir something up by showing ourselves, we should try to cover ourselves a bit more so that we blend in the crowd," he explained with a thoughtful expression.

"That's an excellent plan, Bast!" Namah complemented as she smiled at him with the most alluring look she could give. Ever since they had met, Namah had developed a crush on Bast because of his rebellious yet laid-back nature. Mace and Whip were actually beginning to catch on to this, but Lilith and even Bast himself seemed completely unaware of Namah's feelings for the scarf-wearing delinquent. Strangely enough, even the debacle she had in the caves with Bast didn't seem to stifle her affections for him one bit.

"Better safe than sorry, am I right?" Bast replied, to which the whole group easily agreed. The boy then turned his attention to the bag they had brought with them. "So, what extra clothes did you guys bring?" he asked as he opened the bag.

"I kept the jackets and hats that we found in the Starfall fortress, some stuff that Mace and Whip brought, as well as my and Namah's stuff," Lilith explained, and helped Bast search through the clothes. Within seconds, they procured the gear that they had worn in the Starfall Mountains, as well as a coat for Bast. Mace's hand reached into the bag for something, and it came out holding the jester mask that he had found when they got back to Anduruna. As he pulled the accessory out, Mace smirked with glee. Bast recognized the mask, and only remembered the annoyance and anger he associated with it.

"Did you seriously keep that stupid thing?" Bast said to Mace, while sounding annoyed as ever.

Mace just replied to Bast's remark with a smarmy look that acknowledged the other boy's discomfort. "Of course I did, buddy! Don't you worry, I won't wear him- I just wanted to bring him along! We wouldn't want to forget all of the fun times we've had with this thing, now would we?" Mace teased with a grin.

"Don't make me break your nose!" Bast shot back.

0ooOoo0

A few minutes later, the Dreamkeepers cautiously emerged from the alleyway, dressed in extra clothes in an effort to hide their true appearances. Mace held Whip by the tail like a balloon as the group continued forward until they got to a sidewalk on the edge of another paved road. They discovered that this road had more of the self-propelled groundcars travelling on it, and it seemed as if they were going pretty fast. They were quite varied in size and appearance, and they looked to serve many of the same purposes that regular groundcars did. There were some that looked sleek and luxurious and there were some that looked more worn and dated in comparison to the nicer ones. A few of them were large and had storage containers on their beds, and a few were open-ended in the back. It also seemed that the people inside them still had to control the groundcars themselves. There was also a low, growling noise that the vehicles emitted, and the Dreamkeepers could not determine what was causing it.

In a way, it began to remind them of Anduruna's crowded and bustling thoroughfares. This place seemed so familiar yet at the same time kind of alien to the young Dreamkeepers. Whatever the case may have been, they had to find a way home and back to the Archives.

As they continued down the sidewalk, hoping to find someone who looked friendly enough to get some answers from, the companions passed what they assumed to be a store that sold data-scrolls. At least that was the most familiar thing they could equate it to. Behind the shop's glass window, the young Dreamkeepers could see about fourteen flat-screens that had images and video being projected onto them like data-scrolls. However, they knew that these devices weren't data-scrolls because they were not transparent at all, and the picture quality actually seemed to be a bit clearer. The group just predicted that these were newer, more advanced data-scrolls in comparison to the ones in Anduruna. This could make sense because if there was a civilization of Dreamkeepers beyond Anduruna then they would most certainly have different technology. However, the most interesting details about the devices were in the subjects of the images themselves. Each of them had different content as well. Although, all of the videos featured people that were similar to the hundreds that surrounded them on the streets at that very moment.

One of them showed what appeared to be a game-show (although it wasn't one that they had ever heard of), with the host speaking into a microphone and prompting the contestants to spin a huge, colorful wheel with numbers on it. Whip continued to happily watch this, while the others shifted their attention to see what else was showing. In another program, which seemed to be a drama of some sort, there was a group of four or five people covered in tattered clothing and bruises, holding what the kids determined to be some sort of springer-type weapons and walking down an empty road in the middle of a forest. Perhaps the weirdest program they saw was a hand-drawn cartoon that seemed to be about a yellow square with a high-pitched voice and a pink star of some kind in swim-shorts, talking to a particularly miffed brown, fluffy thing that was also in a bathing suit.

"_What's so great about dumb 'ol Texas, anyway?" _the pink star asked his friend in a voice that suggested he was a bit slow. Not knowing what the hell this was about, they looked away from the storefront and back out into the street. Lilith stared at the pedestrians with a look of worry on her face, and Bast immediately took notice of this.

"This is worrying me just as much, Lilith. This weird city isn't all that's bothering me, either. What about how similar these people look?" Bast said.

"I know…" she replied softly. "Come on, let's try to find some help- we can't just sit here aimlessly, right?" she added with a small smile. Mace, Namah, and Bast followed her lead as they began to move away from the storefront, all except for Whip. He was still watching the game show, so Mace had to pull him away by his tail. "Come on, Whip…" Mace growled. Whip resisted a bit, but eventually came away and joined the others. They all started walking again past the shops and streets until they came to a square that was populated just as thickly as the previous areas of the strange city.

The group of Dreamkeepers walked near the center of the square, and searched around with their eyes to see if there was anyone who looked friendly enough to give them directions. However, this was proving to be difficult, as most of these people seemed to be in quite the hurry.

As Lilith was looking at a few likely candidates, one in particular caught her eye. It seemed to be a Male Dreamkeeper that looked a lot like the others in this city, and he appeared to be looking away from them, minding his own business. Although, there was one big difference that set him apart from the crowd. He was wearing an orange and gray jumpsuit of some kind, and he also had a crowbar tucked neatly under his left arm. A few pedestrians gave him weird looks as he gazed around at the square they were in. She figured that this man wouldn't notice the Dreamkeepers' excessive garment count, since he was dressed rather outlandishly as well. Lilith tapped the other Dreamkeepers on their shoulders, and pointed to the man with the crowbar. She figured that this would be as good a chance as any to at least get some information regarding this strange city. The group of Dreamkeepers cautiously approached the much taller man, as Namah coughed at him to get his attention. The others shot her a stern glare, but Namah just smiled nonchalantly.

The man slowly turned around with a perplexed look on his face, trying to locate the person who wanted his attention. The Dreamkeepers could now see that he wore black-rimmed glasses, and had a dark-brown beard around his mouth. He slowly looked downwards at the slightly shorter Dreamkeepers in front of him, and straightened his glasses as his eyes widened.

"Um, hello sir!" Lilith said to him with a polite smile.

"What… the hell?" the man said aloud as he sized up the Dreamkeepers in front of them. To anyone else, they looked as if they were way too overdressed for the summertime, and they appeared to be no taller than 5 feet each. Lilith continued smiling at the man, while Bast adjusted his scarf, Namah slowly waved to him, and Mace held Whip by the tail as if he was a balloon. Confused by the suspicious troupe in front of him, the man continued to stare until he remembered that the tall one in front wanted something.

"OH! Yeah, that's right… how can I help you?" the man asked as casually as he could.

The Dreamkeepers had expected such a reaction ever since they got to this city, so Lilith continued the conversation like there was nothing to it. "Hello, my colleagues and I were just wondering how far the city of Anduruna is from here," Lilith said to him. The man thought to himself for a moment before answering Lilith's question.

"Hm… Sorry, I've never heard of that city before…" the man replied with a kind yet slightly apologetic expression. "Is Anduruna free or occupied?" he asked honestly.

Lilith and the others' faces went totally blank. "Oh… Well I uh, we… don't know what you mean by that," Lilith replied, sounding confused. "Actually, could I ask what this city is called?" she asked.

"This place is called Channel City," the man replied. "However, my partner and I haven't been here very long, I'm afraid… and we didn't exactly plan on coming here, either," he explained.

Lilith was about to say 'thank you', but she was stopped by the man.

"Wait a second… what did you mean when you said that you didn't know whether or not this Anduruna of yours was free or occupied?" the man asked them.

"We're not really sure," Namah interjected. "We could ask you the same thing."

"Well, I'm talking about the Combine, of course!" the man replied. "Where is Anduruna and is it occupied by the Combine, or free?"

"What's the Combine?" Bast suddenly asked the man. The group could tell that this guy was becoming increasingly confused as this conversation dragged on.

The man looked over to another person in a brown jacket and jeans- presumably a female. "…Alyx?" he called to her.

Alyx turned her head and walked over to where the conversation was taking place. "Yeah? Any luck on tagging this place yet?" she asked.

"Nope, but I met these kids…" the man said to Alyx. He then looked back at the Dreamkeepers. "My name is Gordon Freeman," he told them. "And this is my comrade, Alyx," he added.

Alyx, the female with the jacket, jeans, and headband, smiled back at the Dreamkeepers. "Indeed!" she said as she crossed her arms. "Now can you all tell us who you are?" she suddenly asked.

"My name's Mace," Mace said.

"I go by Bast," Bast added.

"I'm known as Namah," Namah replied. "And you've already met Lilith," she added and pointed to her sister, who waved back shyly.

"Okay then," Gordon began. "Now that introductions are out of the way, let's get back to the topic at hand. You guys said that you didn't know what the Combine was, you were trying to get back to Anduruna, and that you didn't know if this city of Anduruna was free or not, correct?" The Dreamkeepers nodded in unison. "Well, as it just so happens, Alyx and I _do_ in fact, know what the Combine is. The Combine is a ruthless, interdimensional empire hell bent on taking over the Multiverse as we know it. They have conquered multiple planets and dimensions, one of them being our own world, Earth," Gordon explained. "Any of that ring a bell?"

"Unfortunately, no…" Lilith sighed. "But… how could we not know about them?"

"It's probably the fault of the Andurunian government," Bast observed. "They're always trying to keep secrets from us. Even though some news from the outside makes its way into the city, not much of it is readily available to everyday citizens."

"Makes sense to me," Gordon replied. "We'll tell you guys more about them later, but I don't know if we should give everything away about ourselves yet. No one else in this place seems to know what I mean by 'occupied or free' either, and Alyx and I are two people that could get in huge trouble if we were to speak incorrectly on the matter depending on where we are."

"Alright then…" Alyx commented. "Why are you guys trying to get back to this Anduruna place?"

Lilith spoke up. "We're from Anduruna," she replied. "It's where we live. We… just want to get home..." Her companions nodded, and blinked their eyes.

"It's kind of urgent that we do so as soon as possible," Bast explained.

"And why is that?" Gordon asked, becoming intrigued.

Mace crossed his arms, and closed his eyes. "Well, let's just say that we don't want to reveal everything about ourselves yet, either. We're five people that could get in huge trouble if we were to speak incorrectly on those matters depending where we are…"

"Eh… not bad, kid!" Gordon murmured as he cracked a smile. "Fair is fair, I guess."

"Anyway, where is it located- like on a map?" Alyx asked earnestly. The Dreamkeepers froze, not really knowing how to respond.

"We… aren't really sure…" Lilith responded rather sheepishly.

These comments made Gordon and Alyx raise an eyebrow. "Wait… what's going on here? How could you not know where you are, or what this city was called? Just like us?" Gordon asked suspiciously. The Dreamkeepers began to think some more about their current predicament, as well as Gordon and Alyx's reactions.

There was a very awkward silence between the two parties for a few minutes. "Well… we didn't exactly come here to this area by choice," Lilith admitted.

"Wait, you guys said that you also didn't come here by choice!" Namah observed.

"You're right, we did…" Gordon replied. "Although I have to say, it's probably not the same case for all of us. But if you could tell us… how exactly did you end up in this place to begin with?" he asked the Dreamkeepers. The group thought about the question posed to them for a moment. Was it really the best time to reveal something like this?

"To tell you the truth, we were exploring some caves underneath Anduruna in the hopes of finding something. When we finally did, a strange blue light enveloped the entire room, and the next thing we knew, we landed on top of a ridge overlooking this city," Lilith explained to the two newcomers.

"Hold on!" Alyx suddenly exclaimed. "That's almost exactly what happened to Gordon and I when we got warped to this place!" Gordon's eyes widened as he remembered what Alyx had told him earlier, and the Dreamkeepers' fur stood on end as they gradually put the pieces of the puzzle together.

"You… and us… we…" Namah stammered.

"This is crazy…" Mace said to himself, mostly shocked that they met someone else that had a similar experience as they did.

"Alright, this conversation is far from over!" Alyx said to the collective group. "We need to talk about this back at the temporary shelter we found, right Gordon?"

Gordon nodded, and looked at the Dreamkeepers. "It's getting late and I'm assuming that you guys don't have a place to stay, am I right?" he asked. The Dreamkeepers could only nod in return. "Okay then. We'll let you guys stay with us for the night, and we can discuss this further," he told them. "The place we mentioned isn't too far from here, but expect a little walk before we get there," he warned.

"No sweat, dude! We're all no strangers to walking, right guys?" Namah asked her companions slyly. She was only met with silence. "I guess I remember it more fondly, I suppose…"

0ooOoo0

_The group left the square together, and made way for Gordon and Alyx's shelter as the sun began to sink below the distant ocean, hills and forests surrounding the city. As night began to fall, questions rattled the minds of the seven companions as they were all just about as lost as each other when it came to figuring out their current situation. _

**End of Chapter 5…**

_**A/N: I am sorry for the lack of updating lately- you know... school and shit. Well, I'm still bogged down with school for the time being, so I apologize for any choppiness or weirdness in this chapter. Its all of this awkward stuff I need to get past. Anyway, now I'm doing a *SPECIAL-ENDING-PARAGRAPH*! You know, something akin to "LAS TIEM ON AVTAR" but at the end and its NEXT. TIME. Anyone know what I'm talking about? No? Good. But I'll be doing those at the end of each chapter from now on. Maybe I'll go back and put one at the end of the other 4 chapters, but who knows. **_

**_Huge thanks to RedGodzilla for shooting me a review! Glad you're liking the story, and there is definitely more where that came from! Stay tuned!_**


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